Young Equestrians – How We Can Help

By Phillipa

Horse lovers will be glued to their TVs over the coming weeks, watching the various equestrian events taking place in Rio, and hopefully cheering Team GBR and watching them standing on the podium.

The dressage, cross country and show jumping disciplines will become increasingly popular because of the Olympics, with serious riders feeling aspirational as they see their heroes battle for the top spot. There will also be lots of little girls, and boys, inspired by what they see others achieve, and there will be a number of Shetland ponies being ridden flat out in a meadow near you, I daresay.

Watching other riders is, in my opinion, a great way to learn. To cast an analytical eye over the experts should be encouraging and enlightening, it should never make one feel second rate in any way. William Fox-Pitt, Charlotte Dujardin and Carl Hester all had to start somewhere. They each have had their struggles, their doubts and I would bet have felt on occasion that they were never going to cut the mustard.

But they carried on, and here they are, in Rio, hoping for gold.

This is something I feel should be instilled in young riders from the start. Of course, not all of them will become renowned equestrians. There will be some who just love horses, want to be able to ride well enough to stay in the saddle and will grow into happy hackers and may one day have a horse of their own.

Some will simply outgrow the hobby and may never return to it or may re visit horse riding when they are older and have the time to enjoy it.

Then there are the ones who really love it. Who seem to have an aptitude, a natural talent perhaps that needs encouragement and coaching. They are our future ‘Team GBR’ members, and they could be the kids at the yard you ride at. It could be the little boy with the naughty Shetland, or the sweet teenage girl with the pony who she is so proud of for winning her first ever red rosette.

As equestrians, I believe we should try to remember what it was like at that age. Youngsters can often come across as a bit full of themselves and may seem as if they are not going to listen to ‘old people’ (by which I mean anyone over twenty five) and sometimes do little to help themselves.

But we were all there once. Trying to find our way in the world, feeling as if we are between child and adult, stuck in a void where no-one understands us. That’s why, as adults, we have to be the bigger person, literally and figuratively.

This is not to say that we should be telling every single child that they are destined for world class equestrian success. No one wants to see the X-Factor style, ego inflating talk that only sets the child up for a serious fall.

It means, instead, that discussion should be encouraged and it should be understood that we will be guiding and advising these youngsters without any form of appreciation coming our way.

Sometimes with youngsters, especially teens, we just need to sow the seed. Whilst some may openly seek advice from the mature riders around them many will appear convinced that they know best. These are the ones who need us to sow the seed. They may turn the advice over in their heads, and at some point will try out a new way of riding, grooming, lunging…whatever it is that they have been given guidance on.

Encourage them to watch the greats on TV, and the very good riders at your yard. They can learn so much from picking up on the amazing riding as well as analysing the issues. Watching someone else’s jump position and talking about why it works so well or what could be done to improve it will be taken on board subconsciously if nothing else, and will become one of the pieces of the jigsaw that eventually paints the picture of the successful equestrian.

I have met some talented young riders at my yard, and it’s a joy to watch them develop, find out by trial and error which discipline suits them best and improve their riding and overall horsemanship skills.

I hope I can continue to encourage them and learn just as much (if not more) from them as they can from me.

Here’s to Team GBR 2024!